Utility device for infants



March 23, 1954 A. N. SPANEL UTILITY DEVICEFOR INFANTS Filed Oct. 50, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet l ATTO R N 2Y5.

INVENTO'; ABRAHAM N. SPANEL.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIL March 23, 1954 A. N. SPANEL UTILITY DEVICE FOR INFANTS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 50, 1947 R m W m a: u V Fl n M u .IVWHWHWIMII I I A i 5 Z I W a 13:7 v F I {if}! F n\ i III I M I m I V flAi m I IAI. u. 7 5 M/ 4/ 4 ll w M m Q a March 23, 1954 SPANEL 2,672,628

UTILITY DEVICE FOR INFANTS Filed Oct. 30. 194'? 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR.

YBAHAM N. SPANEI...

%?M A TORNEKS.

March 1954 A. N. SPANEL UTILITY DEVICE FOR INFANTS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. 30. 1947 INVENTOR. ABRAHAM N. SPANEL.

Patented Mar. 23, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,672,628 UTILITY DEVICE FOR INFANTS Abraham N. Spanel, Princeton, N. J. Application October 30, 1947, Serial No. 783,112 4 Claims. (01. -348) This invention relates to a utility device for infants and more especially to a device utilizable as a bed, for receiving and holding an infant in reclining or sitting position or for carrying said infant, and a bath. The'deviee is adapted to be folded or rolled into a compact package or bundle which may be readily carried; and in the embodiment of the invention herein illustrated the device comprises a detachable envelope container serving jointly to hold the device in folded position and to be enclosed within the folds for accommodating an infant's wearing apparel.

An object of the invention is to provide a lightweight device which may be utilized for supporting or carrying the infant and as a receptacle for holding water in which to bathe the infant.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device utilizable as a bed and bath and readily collapsible and foldable into a light, compact package or bundle which may be readily carried in a woman's handbag.

The invention consists in the novel features, arrangements and combination of parts embodied by way of example in the device hereinafter described as illustrating a preferred form of the invention, and the invention will-be more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will more clearly appear from the detailed description given below taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, whichform a part of the specification.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a preferred embodimentof the invention shown in collapsed and folded condition for carrying; W

Fig. 1a is an end elevational view of the device as shown in Fig. 1;

Figs. 1b .and 1c are side and end views respectively showing the deviceof Figs. 1 and larolled into a compact bundle for insertion in a handbag; 1

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device in partially folded condition;

' Fig. 2a is a longitudinal sectional view of the [device in its folded condition indicated in Fig. 2; Fig. 3 is 'aplan view'ofsaid device, withithe -i lining envelope receptacle removed, showing the Fig. 5 is an end view of the device as shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken at 16-6 of Fig. 7-is' a longitudinal cross-sectional" view taken at I -l; of'Fig. 4 with the casing removed to show the internal arrangement of the inflatable unit; Fig. 8 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken at 88 of Fig. 7, with the inflatable unit positioned for use as a bed;

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8, but with the inflatable unit inverted for use as abath;

Fig. 10 is a segmented top plan viewof the device as positioned in Figs. 7 and 8;

Fig. 11 is a transverse cross-sectional view tak en at |l-ll of Fig. 10 and showing further details;

Fig. 12 is a plan view illustrating a modified form of the inflatable unit disposed for use as a bath;

Fig. 13 is a similar view showing thedevice of Fig. 12 disposed for use as a bed; Fig. 14 is an end elevational view of the devic as shown in Fig. 13;

Fig. 15 is a segmented sectional view-taken at 15-45 of Fig. 14;

Fig. 16 is a somewhat enlargedsegmented view, partly in section, of thedevice as shown in Fig.

Fig. 17 is an end elevational view of the device as shown in Fig. 12; V

Fig. 18 is a plan view illustrating another modification of the inflatable unit disposed for use as a bath;

Fig. 19 is a plan view illustrating another modification of said unit disposed for use as a bath;-

Fig. 20 is a sectional view taken at 2020 of Fig. 19;

Fig. 21 is a somewhat enlarged sectional view of a portion of the device shown in :Fig. 20 showing a further modification;

Fig. 22 is a plan view of a further modification of said unit disposed for use as a bath;

Fig. 23 is a sectional view taken at 23-23 of Fig. 22; i

Fig. 24 is a plan view of still a further modification of said unit disposed for use as a bed; and Fig. 25 is a somewhat enlarged segmental view, partly in section, showing furtherdetails of the structure shown in Fig. 24. i

' Referring more particularly to the drawings; the device comprises as its main elements inflatable element 1 (shown inflated in Fig. 6) andentirely enclosed within a casing member 2, which in the preferred embodiment illustrated also serves as a carrying case for infants wearing apparel and accessories, as will be more particularly pointed-out hereinafter.-

The casing 2 is made of soft fabricor-the like material and comprises an' upper'fa'ce 3-.and a lowerface 4 interconnected bya peripheral wall g e n i err e a. oliir.ths

'd'riv'emerit siz to be'icar ea Thedevijce s thus 3 comprising the side walls 5--6, the top end wall I and the bottom end wall 8, as best seen in Fig. 3 where the device is in collapsed but extended position with the side walls 5 and 6 folded over the upper face 3 and the end walls I and 8 folded thereover. It is understood that the device as shown in Fig. 3 contains the inflatable unit I in deflated condition; a slit opening being provided at the juncturejae tween the end yqallfl and the i emi e i e a file t e t b (shownat 52 in Figs. 7 and of the member I, and fastening means such as the snap fastenerse serving to releasably hold said slit closed. The

lower face 4 is provided with sdita'bly spaced is sufiiciently soft and pliable for use with infants, may be readily washed and cleaned without damage, may be compactly folded, and furnishes substantial strength for relatively little weight.

This element comprises a body portion designated in general as 40 and a panel portion designated in general as 4|. Since the unit I is devised to serve the dual purpose of a bed and a bath -each of the portionsgil anddl are adapted ;;tqli s rzl ese tiveb' dii lils fi i-t nsiahd to ooperate with each other in their respective functions. The body portion 40 provides a frame or support which pneumatically holds the panel 4! suspended; in yieldable horizontal position when the device is used as a bed; and for this secured thereto an adjustable belt M for holding the infant in position when the dev ice is us ed asa'mattress of "the like? 1 1i The upper end 1 is provided with fa'ste'lnling element such as- 'snapf fasteners15:46 disposed adjacent face 3and the lqwer face is provided with a second set of fastening "elements 111+!!! (Fig; s) 1 positioned that" "when-" the collapsed casing 2 and enclosed inf latable mem er I are folded about a transverse" line spaced substantially one-third of the' length of the device the fastening; ele ents l-'!"|'8 -wil l be adjacent the fold-line. A' -reeeptscie I!) in the shape ofjan envelope is provided with fastening elements Mi -2 l "and" 32%23} pa iesnga t; engage the first and second sets of fastening elements 'i5l i and I ll- |8 whe n the parts are disposed as shown in' -Fi g-I""2; thus serving to' hold e de vice in the partly folded position shownjm Fig. 2 The recptac1e 5 l-9 preferably comprisesltwo oppositely disposed e seema ime ts pr v d with spectively cooperating closure flaps 24 25 and the entire envelope ,is made of 'thin resilient ride' or the like. '-Th upper end 7 (Figs; 2 and 3) carries secured thereto adjacent juncture with i a nlsms f; the cover I p se eme T29," 39 and 3'l"disposed sub antially" at the fold in s an atera ly s ectator e o era ns e ga snt r i hs h .f en rrelemsntslili; Hand t "w hu e seen ltlia t h nith i hpe ect is "folded overto the position shown in Eigs. 1

a d la. th lattertweseise i iasi x ns e me f l dinqs tion Le t a 21, 2,1 nK VZB and the .lQ

-fp s ad e mprisssgutq fbl fold 0 (Field) "1;

a FPS- ro edh u ve tic ax s .53

t r r gin. a w mesba ddriv des v i air present; embodiment ismade from polyvinyl; chloride or the alike. 1 such ma'terial not only lends itself to ready fabrication, but

and waterandinth function the body must provide sufficient resistl annexinna erticalgfcompression and resistance against inward movement in a horizontal direc- -tio1r.'- When the device is used as a bath the body 40 functions as a sidewall of a watertight recep- -taolefa'nd i' s' therefore in' waterfiightifigage em withthe anerg whiehserves' as thefbottom'for r said recepta'cle; and-for this "function the body must withstand outwardresisrasc irrahor'fi'gontal' direction Whilema'intaining its 'gene'ralshape and height." The panel "portion in 'on position'is adaptedto holdan infant-"in correct-beanie and in the other positionasj the steam of th'aforementioned; bathjin'rvhich smarts the 'piieumatic feature desirable. The sevefal'hharacteristms and funotions are "conveniently met by the inventionnow to be de's'crib Inthe preferred embodime (FigSflf-ll) the bodyipo'rtion Wis formedo'f tubular s ecti'ons such a as the sides" 42 4aand t1ie b nds" 54am} which arepreferablysubstantially c'irrrful r injoross-section' and 'are' se eqr 'g to'gether "to provide, when infiated, "'a pneumatic --bbd defining an encompassed elongated grierally' rectangiilar'areafand' providing a continuous watertight-sidewall structure, In this embodim th tions are in i ma i bm i e ise ar shewni F air chambe tie h sad? bibs M i. swferea i 'r'o ding'a convenience in e 4 stan arginal' edges are soa is Ei ht see el' e i h n corresporiam peri nem ione of the body portion 40 adjacent the upper f; therof'along'the line designated; f of strips 4 9l tare iii-sewed h irs? PM 1 bottom Sheets 46'-'4l;-extendi n U ntia'lly parallellongitediealafisnqafie ae .s es die .t. n transverse direction'with the'iipiiei edges 43 of said s riss siassswrei t th iensr'ie the s l sne rse g i dlt 'sllewefe 9% erased trins b,e il sun eWil em? urf of the lower she et' gll; it will thus be seen that these strips provide partitions intermediate [the upper .a M WQRsht tifiifii A w f s Seen arti't'ib nsterminatein oppod ch'ar' spaced inwardly n e o If panl 'dltd thereby place the numerousacellsintermediateithese partitions incommunica't ion {with each other at their respectivelyopposite" ends. 'Itwill also beseenfrom .Fig. 7 thatthe interior of the panel is in cominundation with the interior of the tubular body "portion; 4u by means loi amopening 0; (Figs. 7, 10 and 11); This openings is conveniently provided; by sealingi the' loviiensheet 41 to the ad: 7

jacent wall of the tubular end along an arcuate path 5| (Fig. which seam 48.

A suitable inflating tube 52, provided with a valve 53, serves as a common means for simultaneously inflating both the body portion &0 and the panel portion 4|. The panel portion 4| when inflated serves as a cushion which is supported from the body portion 40.- The thickness ofthe pneumatic cushion panel 4| is substantially less than the thickness of the body portion 40 so that in the position shown in Fig. 8 the cushionpanel is suspended along the top edge of the body 40 so as to span the space defined by the body. The longitudinal partitions 49 provide the desired condition of relatively greater transverse than longitudinal bending of the cushion panel, thus insuring excellent posture qualities. It has been joins the sealing found that the strength of the pneumatic cushion panel is materially improved by extending the partitions at 49 into the taperedends of the cushion in such manner that the vertical extent of the partitions is, greater at, their ends than is the corresponding depth of the pneumatic panel. This serves to distribute the strain at this point and prevents the partitions from tearing. away'from the upper and lower sheets 46-41 at theextremities of the partitions.

The pneumatic panel 4| is one of the important featuresfof the invention and has proven to be far superior to a single ply ofv material in properly supporting an infant suspended above the support on which the body 40 rests and in providing the desired softness while preserving correct posture. It is further noted that the device as shown in Figs. 4-6, when inflated somewhat loosely, may

be readily bent in a longitudinal direction about its midpoint; so that with an infant attached by the strap |4 it may assume a sitting position and in such position the device when thus bent may be placed in a chair or the like and will retain the infant in this position without being held by an attendant. If desired a retaining strap (not shown) attachable and detachable by any suitable means may be provided for positively holding the device in bent position. The extreme lightness of the device will be appreciated when it is understood that devices of the present embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1-6, inclusive, weigh only about one pound.

In Fig. 9 the inflatable unit is shown positioned on a suitable support such as 54 with the cushion panel 4| inverted so as to rest on the support. In this position the peripheral body portion 40 serves as the-side walls and the pneumatic panel 4| as the bottom wall of a receptacle to hold water 55 for bathing an infant; and the pneumatic' panel 4| provides a resilient cushioned bottom.

As an example of the relative dimensions "which have been found satisfactory it is noted that in m the embodiment above described'the pneumatic unit'l when inflated is about 15 /2 x 30" in plan view; the body member is about 4" in diameter;

the pneumatic bottom panel about 1%"overall thickness and is so disposed as to extend-about 6 outwardlybeyond the adjacent sidefiof-the body member; thus providing, when used as a not at present consideredto be as desirableas the preferred embodiment, all things considered,

they embody in varying degrees the useful featuresof the invention. In eachqembodiment the unit is made of the same character of material as heretofore described with reference to the preferred embodiment.

In Figs. 12-17, inclusive, I have shown a modification in which two elongated tubular side members 6| carry secured thereto a pneu-' matic bottom panel 62 comprising longitudinally extending cells constructed and arranged in accordance with the preferred embodiment, except that in the present embodiment these cells and the bottom member 62 extend upwardly to provide end members 63-454 (Figs. 12 and 17). The sides and ends of the body are secured together in watertight relationship and the pneumatic envelope is completed by corner seals such as 56. It will thus be seen that the peripherally extending side wall comprises the side members E0-6| and the end sections 63 and M. The infiatablesection 60 is in communication with the endsectionsfi3-p64 by means of portssuch as 65 and the end sections 63- are in communicationwith the opposite side section 6| by means of similar ports such as 55; it being understood that the respective cells of the sections t3 and 64 are in communication with each other at their outer ends in the manner previously described with respectto the preferred embodiment. The cells of the end sections are in communication with the corresponding cells of the bottom panel 62; it being noted that at the juncture between the bottom panel and end sections the sealing line such as 67 extends transversely of the cells to provide a line defining'the juncture between the bottom and ends, and this sealing line is interrupted in each cell, as at 68 to thereby provide for the passage of air between the corresponding cells of the bottom and ends.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the side and end walls constitute a peripherally extending supporting body for the bottom 52 and that the parts are so disposed and arranged that when the bottom 62 is disposed lowermost, as in Figs. 12 and 17, a watertight receptacle is provided which is adapted to. serve as an infants bath; and

that when the device is positioned with the bettom uppermost, as in Fig. '13, the device is adapted to serve as a bed for an infant. As in the preferred embodimentthis unit is preferably made of polyvinyl chloride or the like material and is adapted 'to be inflated by a common tube and valve 69. 3 I

In Fig. ls I'have'shown another modification in which two side members |0l| and one end member 12 are constructed and arranged as in the preferred embodiment and the other end member is provided by means of an end panel 73 which is formed as a continuation of a bottom panel 14 in the manner previously described with respect to the parts 52 and 63 of the modification above described in connection with Figs. lit-1'7. The two sides ill-ll and the endit are sealed together by corner seals 16 so as to provide the watertight and airtightcharacteristics above described. In this embodiment a common inflatingvalve and tube is designated as ldand is secured to and in communication with the end section 72. The side sections lib-ll are formed as conment (Figs. 7 and .1;0),.-and the'endsection'ifi is in communication with the bottom T4 in the maning outwardly beyond one exterior surface of said pneumatic body and its interior surface extending inwardly within said peripheral body and spaced a substantially greater distance from the opposite exterior surface of said body, whereby when said unit is disposed within said fabric casing with the panel uppermost a bed is provided and when said unit is removed from said casing and is disposed with said panel lowermost a, bath is provided having a cushioned bottom, and said cover also having a panel portion spanning said area between points on said opposite surface of said body.

3. A utility device for infants comprising an elongated inflatable bed and bath unit, a cover and carrying case enclosing said unit, a receptacle for apparel, said cover and enclosed deflated unit being readily foldable into three folds one of which is disposed intermediate the other two, detachable fastening means jointly car- I ried by said receptacle and cover for securing said parts together and thus holding said intermediate fold against one outer fold, fastening means for securing said outer folds together, and cooperating handles secured to said respective outer folds for carrying said device, said inflatable unit comprising a, peripherally extending pneumatic body portion defining an encompassed area and a panel spanning said area and having its marginal edges secured to and in watertight engagement with a corresponding peripheral zone of said body portion, whereby when said unit is inflated and is disposed within said casing with the panel uppermost a bed is provided and when said unit i removed from said casing and is disposed with said panel lowermost a bath is provided, and said cover having a portion spanning said area and spaced from said panel when said unit is inflated.

4. A utility device for infants comprising an inflatable bed and bath unit, and a removable fabric or the lik cover encasing said unit, said inflatable unit comprising a body member having pneumatic portions, and a pneumatic cushion panel member having a thickness less than the height of said body member, said panel member being secured in watertight relationship to said pneumatic portions and one of said members also forming a pneumatic wall extending between said pneumatic portions, said wall being secured in watertight relationship to said pneumatic portions to form with said body member a peripherally continuous, watertight wall extending around at least the major portion of said panel member and said panel member having watertight continuity with a corresponding peripheral zone of said peripheral Wall adjacent one face of said body member, whereby when said unit is disposed within said fabric cover with the panel uppermost a bed is provided and when said unit is removed from said casing and disposed with said panel lowermost a bath is provided having a cushioned bottom, and said cover having a portion spanning the area within said peripheral wall and spaced from said panel member.

ABRAHAM N. SPANEL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

